Mr Higgins's salary for the year was given in full as £360,000, which has risen to £372,600 in 2007/2008.

Mr Smith was one of Tony Blair's two official spokesman. It fell to him to announce the death of Government weapons adviser Dr David Kelly to reporters on the then prime minister's plane as it arrived in Tokyo in 2003.

He later received a CBE before landing his dream job as chief spin doctor for the 2012 Olympics.

Tory MP Richard Bacon, a member of the public accounts committee, said: "David Higgins has a very high salary, but he is probably worth it.

£207,000: Hugh Sumner

"As for the others, I would like to know whether they are really value for money."

Matthew Elliott, head of the Tax-Payers' Alliance pressure group, said: "The cost of the Olympics has run out of control, and taxpayers will not be pleased to learn they are paying massive salaries to the people overseeing this spending binge."

A spokesman for the authority defended the high salaries and said the National Audit Office spending watchdog had approved the way it published its figures in last year's annual report.

"This is a project without precedent," he said.

"It is one of the biggest business challenges in the world and one of the biggest jobs in the construction industry.

"The remuneration of the senior management team reflects the scale of this challenge and is consistent with industry market levels.

"The annual report clearly states under the name of each director the date they started in post and, therefore, the salary paid from that date for that year.

"This has been a completely open process with no attempt to avoid scrutiny."